Toothbrushes have been proposed in which pressurized-air nozzles are provided adjacent to the bristles in order to cleanse teeth and interproximal spaces with pressurized air. In addition to the cleaning action of the bristles, the pressurized air blows away adhering particles and produces a massage effect. U.S. Pat. No. 3,823,710 discloses a handheld toothbrush in which a pulsed stream of air is discharged from a tip element arranged at the forward end adjacent to the bristle set, said stream of air being produced by a tandem diaphragm pump. The tip element is connected with a pressurized air channel in the neck of the toothbrush which is connected to the air pump at the handle part through a tube. U.S. Pat. No. 3,178,754 proposes an electric toothbrush with a compressed-air device. Provided in the handle part of the toothbrush is an air pump which directs compressed air into the interior of the moving toothbrush head. Formed underneath the bristle carrier is a pressure fluid chamber in which the pulsing air pressure arriving from the piston pump develops into a uniform stream, exiting to the bristle set through outlet nozzles as a substantially uniform flow of air.
Patent DE 20 19 003 A1 discloses an electric toothbrush where the brush head impinges a jet of water on the teeth to be cleaned or the surrounding gums. The water jet device comprises a compressor driven by the drive motor of the toothbrush and conveying pressurized air into a water reservoir in the handle of the toothbrush, thereby providing a pressurized water-and-air mixture. This mixture is directed through a line into a feed channel in the interior of the brush attachment from which it is fed to the brush head. In contrast to modern brush attachments, this known brush attachment is moved overall, that is, it has no brush tube which is adapted to be fixedly coupled to the handle and would have in its interior a separate drive train and at its forward end a movably mounted bristle carrier.